


Tell Me What I Have to Do

by dancing_badly



Category: Sanctuary (TV)
Genre: Episode Tag, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-10-20
Updated: 2011-10-20
Packaged: 2017-10-24 19:53:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 857
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/267245
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dancing_badly/pseuds/dancing_badly
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What Helen would do with a second chance. An episode tag for 4x01, Tempus</p>
            </blockquote>





	Tell Me What I Have to Do

**Author's Note:**

> his fic was inspired by [artaxastra's](http://artaxastra.livejournal.com/) fic [Lazarus](http://artaxastra.livejournal.com/398934.html) which you don't need to read to get this, but its a wonderful little ficlet so you might as well :P. My thinking was that if Helen did what she did in Lazarus, she'd definitely do this.

It was risky, she knew that. It was downright immoral if she was honest with herself. But she had to do it. She'd spent the greater part of the last hundred years thinking about this moment, plotting it out in its most minor of details. She'd committed to it, now was the follow through.

Helen stood in the shadows, leaning against a grotted old factory wall. It was the shady part of her neighbourhood, a few blocks away from her Vancouver sanctuary. She'd had a standing monthly date with Trag, a local abnormal who traded intel for her silence and protection against the human world should the need arise. It was this date that Helen was counting on.

It was early March, and in the late hour her toes were going numb in the chilled evening air. She was late. Helen was rarely late, and she cursed herself as she waited patiently.

Finally, after over an hour of waiting, she saw herself walk around the corner across the street and up to the man waiting near a broken swing-set. The meeting was short, as usual, and soon Helen and Trag went their separate ways.

Helen saw herself walk towards her, heading for her. She couldn't see herself, didn't know what she was walking into.

Gnawing doubt ate away at her stomach, making her question whether this was the right thing to do. Wasn't this exactly what she had attacked Adam for doing; and yet here she was, doing it herself. Adam was right though, it would be worth it regardless of what damage she did.

With a firm set to her shoulders, she stepped out of the shadows and into the path of…herself. "Helen" she started and expectedly her other self raised her weapon and took an attack stance.

"Who are you? What do you want?" otherHelen demanded, scanning her other self up and down

"I'm you, I can assure you of that."

"How do I know that. I know of at least eight different species of abnormals who can replicate human appearances."

"Yes, and there are also several abnormals who can read minds, so you aren't very likely to believe me when I can answer things only you would know"

otherHelen glanced around the street, not sensing any others in the area. She did not lower her gun. It was true, she wasn't going to believe this other woman.

"That is true. However, the strongest bit of evidence against you being me is that I would never risk contaminating the timeline like you are doing by confronting myself. Therefor, I could deduce that you are not me."

Helen laughed. This is what Will and James must feel like when they debated her on some topic. "I agree with you, I would never do this and when you've had as long to think about it as I have, the price seems worth it". OtherHelen took in the drawn look about her duplicate's face, the thin lines around her eyes and the hallowed look to her eyes. If this other woman was indeed her, then she'd experienced something far worse than what Helen had…yet.

Clearing her throat, "well than, we seem to be in a situation here. Lets assume I believe you, that you are me, why and how are you here?"

Helen sighed, knowing that she would ask these questions. She'd debated how much to tell herself, what was too much information and whether baring it all wouldn't be the worst of her offences here today.

"I can't tell you everything, but I can say I am a future version of you. I was stranded in the past (please don't ask me why or how) and due to our unique physiology, I was forced to wait out the centuries until I could re-enter the timeline at the same point in which I left it. So I am you….just 110 years older" Helen winked at her other self, knowing the tidbits of information she had dropped would drive her insane. If Helen knew anyone, it was herself.

otherHelen looked herself over, her mind processing the information and trying to come to some sort of conclusion about herself, seeming to accept some of what this woman was saying. She had no logical reason to, she just felt as if she could trust her.

Lowering her weapon slightly, "what is it you've come to tell me?"

Helen relaxed and then stiffened again, "I've come to prevent a death, maybe even two in the process".

The air around them definitely got heavier, and otherHelen was stuck between wanting to know who's death she was to prevent and not wanting to further contaminate the timeline. Curiosity finally won out, "who's death?"

Helen looked at the ground, this was it, the moment. "Ashley's"

otherHelen felt as if she'd been shot and a cold weight settled in her stomach. She could understand why she would risk everything to do this. It was extreme yes, but there was nothing she wouldn't do to save her daughter. Bracing herself, she stared directly into her own eyes, "tell me what I need to do"


End file.
